Establishment of brown shrimp (Crangon crangon) in a newly colonized area

The brown shrimp (Crangon crangon) is widely distributed in the coastal areas of the eastern Atlantic, but was only recently found in Icelandic waters. In this study, annual and seasonal changes in population abundance of brown shrimp southwest of Iceland were recorded from 2005 to 2014 in order to see whether the species has established itself in Icelandic waters. In general, the population grew in the beginning of the study period and seems to have somewhat stabilized in the past few years. The average density of shrimps each month rarely exceeded 200 individuals per 100 m2. The number of juveniles increased in July/August and again in February, indicating bi-annual spawning. The relative abundance of adults was significantly affected by both the number of juveniles of the previous summer and the sea surface temperature. Brown shrimp seem to have rapidly adapted to Icelandic waters and have become established and are highly successful in the newly colonized area.